Arguably the best steak buns in NYC. My fave is the bacon kimchi. The smokiness and bacon are excellent compliments of kimchi. Lock it in a bun and it makes great drunk food. You really can't go wrong with any flavor. If I had to rank them I'd say: bacon kimchi, beef, sweet potato, curry chicken, pork, kimchi. The pastries are okay. I never really like the breading of takoyaki because the ratio of filling to bread isn't ideal. I should also try it fresh there next time instead of bringing it home. Cream cheese is a must try! Cheers! read more

After seeing the cute little fish deserts we had to try one. They are fish waffles and we had ours filled with nutella. While in thought it would be amazing, this time it was not. After taking a bite it was still raw and really doughy inside. Maybe next time I will ask for well done. read more

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So we were in Manhattan and decided to try something new so we found a food mall in the Korean section. As there was a long line at mama's we jumped in line to see what the excitement was about. We ordered kimchi with bacon, beef and spicy pork dumplings. I LOVE kimchi but this bun was less than flavorful and I didn't taste nor see any bacon. The beef was fairly decent, it had flavor the best was the spicy pork bun. Omg I should have ordered several. So it wasn't too spicy but was flavorful more so than the others. Yummy. A person only really needs 1 or two buns as they are fairly large. And for $4 each who can beat that. read more

Right near the entrance of the food court. Quick service and tasty food. Taiyaki was great (both green tea and regular), you can even watch them make it. I tried one of their sweet potato buns with high hopes but was sadly disappointed at its lack of flavor. Stick to the taiyaki and you won't be sorry! read more

Mama - Green tea taiyaki - Korean Near Me - New York, New York

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Best Wang mandoo around. Especially loved the "bunn"s. Would travel all the way from Philly to eat here... read more

Mama - Korean Near Me - New York, New York

I love this place, everyone loves this place. If you don't know about it or haven't been there yet, then there's something wrong with you. Just kidding. But actually though everyone who's ever been to ktown goes here. I almost ALWAYS get a red bean flavored fish taiyaki. It's quick, its yum. But you can get it for cheaper if you go to a korean market in Northern Blvd in Flushing, Queens. Food Vlog: https://youtu.be/53XiDPC2Ag0 read more

My friend took me here to grab a late night snack and I was like sure, I've always enjoyed Taiyaki. But this was different, this had mochi! She said it always has mochi and I said the one's I've always had only had red bean in it. She told me I've had the ghetto ones and now it's time to experience a real one. Green Tea mochi guys! Stuffed with Cream! SO GOOD! It was a cold day and this totally hit the spot! read more

This was a quick stop for us while we were waiting to go to our restaurant. As for ambiance, being located in the heart of K-town, it was busy. It's not the kind of venue to sit-down and more a grab-and-go. My friends have been here and said it's a must-try. It was definitely delicious, but perhaps due to not being able to eat it fresh, I had a hard time finishing the red bean Taiyaki (diminishing returns) and thought it was slightly on the more doughy side. I would like to try this again and eat it immediately after being bought. JB Tours :) read more

Tucked away in a little Korean food court lies the most scrumptious buns. I was starving after a flight from San Francisco. Thankfully, my sister picked up some goodies here for me to munch on. In the beginning, I thought she said pork buns (which I am not a fan of..). Turns out it was a bacon kimchi bun and a marinated beef pocket bun from Mama. It was packed with flavor - so satisfying and just what I needed. We came back again, the same week, to pick some buns up for our family coming in and they all enjoyed it as well. Thumbs up for this place :) read more

I give 3 stars because I asked for a "plain" cake/ no filling, and they obliged. However-I was hoping for a cake-like/ waffle-pancake snack (like the hello kitty shaped side of the street cake snacks) and this was not that. It was crisp on the outside and unfortunately raw/doughy on the inside. I imagine if it was cooked more it would be what I expected... Very disappointing:( read more

Mama - Korean Near Me - New York, New York

Cheap eats are my favorite finds in the city. This one is on my go to list. $3 a bun may be more than what you'd pay in Chinatown, but these are great and still a good price point. I got the bacon kimchi and a curry chicken - the former was forgettable, but the curry chicken was good. Next time I'll pair with another. There is a bottle of, what I thought was plain soy sauce, but it had a strong vinegar presence. So, keep that in mind when applying to whichever bun you choose - it didn't go well with the curry chicken, but didn't f-it up. read more

Mama - Located next to the door - Korean Near Me - New York, New York

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My kids took that good looking fish Taiyaki Nutella and they both took a bite and popped it in their mouths. It was uncooked and had a very nasty taste. I went back and said it wasn't cooked and showed the dough inside. The employee tried to send us because this is the case and did not refund our money, he said he was bitten as a reason. We left it and went crazy. Do not be deceived by the image. Besides the bad taste . Uncooked food . I have never seen such a serious place . It was a bad experience for my children. read more

I'm going to give this place the benefit of the doubt and say if you come at the right time and can actually get fresh one this place might actually be amazing. Unfortunately I was not lucky enough to get fresh ones, instead ours were cold to the touch .These things are very simple and not hard to make to order. Com'on it's batter and filling, not to mention the machine can make several dozen at a time. It's New York, there are delicious food shops on every corner. If you don't see them making a fresh batch do yourself a favor take a couple extra steps and find another shop. Booo I love these things read more

Mama is the kind of place you see on way to work. Its menu has interesting flavors that pulled me in the door for a try. Unfortunately I wasn't satisfied with what I got. I got the chicken curry dumpling. Its flavor was not bad, it was a juicy dumpling. But I hoped for more out of a dumpling for $4. Luckily, my brother and I bought dumplings together, so they only cost us $3.25 each. If they were cheaper, or higher quality I'd have no issue with it. The building it's in is a shared cafeteria. But I'd personally rather take these dumplings to go than stay inside. Mama also has taiyaiki, its a fish shaped cake with red bean inside. I opted not to get any, but I'm sure I would not be satisfied when compared to other places I've gotten it from. read more

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I'll never not take the opportunity to get a crisp, but fluffy taiyaki from K-town every time I visit NYC, and for good reason. Made fresh off the press, these fairly large taiyakis are handed to you in a paper wrapper that conceals their true delectability. It's only after you bite into one that you realize the combination of crunchy outside, soft interior, and red bean flavor really melds together with a delicious synergy. Definitely anticipating the next time I return to NYC and K-town. read more

I ordered the taiyaki with red bean filling. Was disappointed with the texture and taste of the waffle exterior. Although the guy who took my order was nice. read more

Cute specialty kiosk to get dessert-filled fish pancakes! Not actual fish-flavor, but fish shaped for people who never tried it. My friends got the mini cream filled fish that were chocolate dipped. I got a Nutella and a red bean fish. Out of the two, Nutella had to have been my favorite. They larger fish pancakes also had some mochi in there which was a nice surprise! Prices weren't that expensive and there was plenty of seating in the plaza when we went. Definitely a nice mid-afternoon pick me up! read more

Mama - Nutella was AMAZING!! - Korean Near Me - New York, New York

Ordered pork buns from here on Friday evening Feb 8 2019 - both people who had the pork buns got food poisoning and were viciously sick all weekend. Tried calling Mama Bunns to alert them but unable to get through to anyone. Be careful. read more

I got their delimanjoo plain that contains custard. The fishes just look so cute so I couldn't resist. If you want to enjoy these types of dessert fully, you have to eat them hot and fresh off the pan. I took them home so when I had a taste they were all soppy. I will give those delimanjoo or taiyaki another try again because I love their buns so much! read more

Mama - Plain with custard - Korean Near Me - New York, New York

I've been here many times, mostly for a quick snack, but never left a review. Each time I come, I am reminded why I don't like this place. I was here waiting for my Kung Fu Tea and there was no one waiting to order so I decided to order a matcha taiyaki. Bad choice. My taiyaki barely had any custard in it. The thing was $5 and so not worth it. Maybe if it had more custard, I would give this place a higher rating. The taiyaki isn't even all that big to justify $5. I hope I learned my mistake and won't fall for this again. I've also purchased the tiny fishies in the past and those are a tad better than this. You get more, but the times when I ordered it, they were cold and not fresh. Save your money and go elsewhere. read more

I was so excited to have seamless deliver from ktown to me! I also LOVE giant steamed mandoos! I had the Kimchi mandoo and Gogi mandoo.. Honestly, I had much much much better.. The kimchi mandoo is really spicy, but not much flavor at all.. The gogi mandoo, is so so so sweet with not much meat or any filling at all. Another thing that annoys me is that they advertise $3 each including tax! When you order on seamless you get charged $3 plus tax on top of that. That's false advertisement. I hope the management fixes the issue with seamless. I know it's only a few bucks, but it's the principal.. Where in American can you advertise such things without fine prints and get away with it? read more

Love these little critters and place smells awesome! It's like a waffle filled with red bean paste, don't buy too many, they get hard after it cools down read more

Mama - Korean Near Me - New York, New York

The Taiyakis "filled waffles" made of rice batter were super yummy. Just wished they told us the truth about how long they take to make--doesn't take 5; it takes 10min. But super fresh and friendly staff. read more

Nutella Fish! Nah i'll stick to the original red bean please Yummy little nutella fish that was nicely filled and wasnt too batter heavy. The coating itself was pretty good (not the best I had) and I definitely would stick to the traditional fillings (red bean) for these yummy desserts! read more

This was my first time having taiyaki, and I love anything made with glutinous rice! Since it's my first time I don't have any other locations to compare to, but I still loved it. Mama is located at the entrance of a food court type area, and had a decent line ~5 people when we got there, but moved by quickly. We got a cream cheese taiyaki (3.50) and a red bean taiyaki (3.00) and waited about 5 minutes. They were nice and warm (not too hot or cold) and decently sized, but seemed to lack some sort of additional flavor. Either way, I would definitely come back for more! read more

Mama - Korean Near Me - New York, New York

I wondered in here after an appointment one day. They're delicious little pork buns and beef buns are worth the visit. Their meats are marinated To perfection. I'll be back to try everything else! read more

So far, I only tried the pork bun. It was good. Very fresh and well balanced flavor. It has pork and kimchi but the kimchi is not overpowering at all. It has a slight hint of spiciness. Will come back to try other flavors including sweet potatoes. read more

Mama - Korean Near Me - New York, New York

Tried the beef buns here and they're worth the quick stop inside the food court. The contrast between the hot bulgogi flavored beef and cool cole slaw is nice. The bun is steaming fresh as well. read more

Mama - Beef bun - Korean Near Me - New York, New York

Great bun! I tried the red bean and the sweet potato one. I didn't eat them right after purchase, and I did what they suggested me to: heat it up in the microwave for a minute wrapped in paper towel. So good! read more

Mama - Red bean bun. Eat with milk! - Korean Near Me - New York, New York

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The people here are always so friendly to me! The taiyaki is fantastic- I recommend the red bean one over the cream cheese. I find myself craving it after a while! The buns are delicious too. It's great for a snack but I wouldn't count your whole meal on that. read more

The buns and taiyaki are good. I always stop by for the red bean and cream cheese taiyaki. The Nutella one was ok, but not my favorite. Priced fairly IMO read more

Great food Bunns are hot and with variety Best one is nutella tayaki. I eat this everyday read more

$7 for 7 hodu (walnut cakes)! I thought they would be fresh so that was kind of a bummer. The ones I got came from some bin when it was already pre-made. Obviously fresh ones are the best! So even though it was pretty good and still satisfied my sweet tooth, I was a little sad. Maybe if you're lucky you'll get em warm! On a good note, it had really good red-bean-walnut filling ratio! read more

The Taiyaki, fish with red bean and cream cheese was so good. The bun is ok. read more

Mama - Taiyaki - Korean Near Me - New York, New York

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Dropped by just for a snack. I wanted to give their buns a try since they looked interesting. Really wish I had gotten to try their Taiyakis as well, but no room in my stomach. Anyways, I tried the beef bun which wasn't the best I've had, but it was ok. It helps that you get them hot and fresh, but the bun itself was a bit chewy. The meat inside had a nice flavor. Overall, maybe this place is good for desserts, but the buns are probably passable. read more

The stars are for the red bean Taiyaki. I haven't had it anywhere else so nothing to compare it to. The walnut cakes and delimanjoo are just okay. I like the chicken curry and kimchi buns. Tried sweet potato and was not impressed though. It's a good evening snack place to grab something quick under $5. read more

I'm a sucker for sticky desserts and red bean, so I couldn't resist getting a taiyaki. The plain taiyaki is $3 a pop including tax which is on the pricey end since it's not a big fish. Still, it was made to order and piping hot, which sort of made up for the price. The outside had a light crunch and the filling was gooey and not too sweet. I can't speak for the quality of the buns, but the fish was pretty good read more

Fast and delicious. Near Penn Station. In a good court with all kinds of Asian fusion options

I come here and get the regular red bean taiyaki every time I visit Koreatown. It's usually premade and they warm it up on the spot for you. The taiyaki is very chewy and the red bean is moderately sweet. I have yet to try the other flavors but the regular one is already good enough for me! read more

I decided to try the Strawberry Croissant Taiyaki since I was eyeing it for some time and was curious. I think I paid about $5.50 for it and it's the same size as the regular taiyaki. When I got it, it smelled buttery and delicious. It was also fresh made so that was a plus. I took a bite at the end and it was "slightly" flakey, but incomparable to a croissant. But even so I was hoping it would be better as I ate into it, but as you bite into it and get to the filling, it becomes less and less like a croissant. You can taste the butter, but it was in no way or form flakey, especially when you get towards the filling. It just tastes more like a buttery version of a regular taiyaki, but I wouldn't say its worth $5.50. I chose the strawberry filled one and the filling tastes more like any store bought strawberry jam you can find in stores, very artificial. They look like they taste better than they are, is what I can really say about them. I haven't tried their regular taiyaki or the mini ones but I don't think I would go out of my way to try this place out. read more